logo
If a Constable taking Rs100 is removed from post, how is Bachhu Khabad still a cabinet minister: AAP's Isudan Gadhvi

If a Constable taking Rs100 is removed from post, how is Bachhu Khabad still a cabinet minister: AAP's Isudan Gadhvi

Indian Express21-05-2025
Calling the Rs71 crore MGNREGA scam case filed against the sons and nephew of Gujarat Cabinet minister Bachhu Khabad just the tip of the iceberg, and saying it could go up to several hundred crores, Isudan Gadhvi, the chief of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Gujarat on Wednesday asked how the Panchayat Minister, whose family members had carried out a financial scam in his own department, was still in the state cabinet and had not been asked to step down even as the action against his family members had come from the Gujarat Police itself.
Gadhvi asked, 'If a Police Constable taking a bribe of Rs100 is removed from service, how is Bachhu Khabad still a cabinet minister?'
'All his family members have looted Gujarat and so we demand he be removed as a minister and be investigated himself. When the panchayat minister himself is at his post and his family are under investigation, which officers will carry out an impartial investigation?' asked Gadhvi.
Speaking at a press conference in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, Gadhvi further said, 'We also believe that the MGNREGA scheme scam is on the statewide scale. All of the money is coming into the scheme, is for giving 100 days employment to the poor. The ministers of BJP, various officials and the panchayat minister himself are involved in this scam. This should be investigated across the state. We will keep protesting till Khabad does not resign.'
Gadhvi also dragged the Congress party into the scam, a development that came after Congress MP Shaktisinh Gohil on April 18 said that they would contest the assembly by-elections for Visavadar and Kadi assembly seats solo and not in alliance with AAP.
This development was highly surprising for everyone, especially for AAP, who have, since the beginning of their campaign for the Visavadar-Bhesan assembly seat in Junagadh, reiterated time and again that they hoped and believed that the Congress would stand by their understanding of not fielding a candidate in Visavadar by-election since the AAP had adhered to a previously struck bargain of not fielding it's candidates in the by-election for the Vav Assembly seat held in November 2024.
In fact, this claim of an 'understanding' between the AAP and Congress over the Visavadar-Bhesan seat, a very important constituency for the two INDIA alliance partners since it was the constituency of Gujarat's former BJP CM Keshubhai Patel, has been reiterated ever since AAP's Gopal Italia announced his nomination for the seat on March 24, 2025.
Speaking on this development, Isudan Gadhvi said, 'When the by-election came, AAP refrained from fielding candidates in Manavadar, Khambhat and Vijapur and then subsequently in Vav as well because We thought the Congress would have a better chance of defeating the BJP. But today it appears a big Congress leader from Saurashtra and his company are involved in the MGNREGA scam. Perhaps that is why they have conspired to field a candidate in Visavadar by-election.'
Calling the Congress move highly suspect, Gadhvi also mentioned the understanding between the two parties regarding the Vav and Visavadar by-elections.
A Congress leader told the Indian Express that it was Shaktisinh Gohil and Tushar Chaudhary of their party who had initially investigated the 'MGNREGA scam' and then written to CM Bhupendra Patel to take action in the MGNREGA scam.
The Indian Express also spoke to Dr Manish Doshi, spokesperson of the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC), regarding the allegations made by AAP. He said, 'If the AAP really want to do some work, they shouldn't do politics on the matter and rather ask questions of the BJP government. You want support from the Congress but also make allegations on it.'
When asked whether there was an understanding between the two parties with regards to the Vav and Visavadar seats, Dr Doshi said, 'Whenever there is an understanding, you have to discuss candidates. You cannot just unilaterally announce a candidate and then ask the Congress to support you.'
Notably, since Keshubhai Patel left the BJP and won the Visavadar seat from his newly-formed GPP in 2012, the seat has never been won back by the BJP. While Harshadkumar Ribadiya won the by-election of 2014 that was prompted by Keshubhai's resignation on health grounds, and then again in 2017, the seat was then won by Bhupendra (Bhupat) Bhayani of AAP in 2022. The current by-election was necessitated after Bhayani left AAP and joined the BJP in 2023.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'We'll come for you': Rahul Gandhi claims proof of ECI 'fraud' in Karnataka seat
'We'll come for you': Rahul Gandhi claims proof of ECI 'fraud' in Karnataka seat

Time of India

time29 minutes ago

  • Time of India

'We'll come for you': Rahul Gandhi claims proof of ECI 'fraud' in Karnataka seat

Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads New Delhi: Continuing his attack on the Election Commission of India , Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said the party had "concrete 100% proof" that the poll panel allowed cheating in a constituency in Karnataka and warned that it will not get away with this "because we are going to come for you".Gandhi continued his attack on the poll body for the second consecutive day and said that ECI was "not doing its job". He said the party had studied electoral rolls minutely in a Karnataka constituency and alleged that the party had deleted thousands of voters. "We just looked at one constituency and we found this. I am convinced that constituency after constituency this is the drama that is taking place. Thousands and thousands of new voters, how old are they? -- 45, 50, 60, 65, thousands and thousands of them in one constituency. This is one thing, voter deletion, voter addition, new voters who are way above 18 (is going on)... so we have caught them," he about the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav's reported remarks that the option of boycotting Bihar Assembly polls was open, Gandhi told reporters that his party had "concrete 100% proof" of the Election Commission allowing cheating in a seat in Karnataka. "Not 90%, when we decide to show it to you, it is a 100% proof," said Gandhi. "I want to send a message to the Election Commission - if you think you are going to get away with this, if your officers think they are going to get away with this, you are mistaken, you are not going to get away with this because we are going to come for you," Gandhi said outside Congress leader on Wednesday alleged that elections are being "stolen" and claimed that his party has figured out the modus operandi of the "votes theft" by studying a LS constituency in the allegations as "baseless", sources in ECI said, "Wait for the verdict of the Hon'ble HC. Why make baseless allegations now?"

Congress protests against ‘harassment' in Odisha
Congress protests against ‘harassment' in Odisha

Time of India

timean hour ago

  • Time of India

Congress protests against ‘harassment' in Odisha

Kolkata: Congress workers and netas on Thursday staged a protest in front of Utkal Bhawan in Kolkata to protest against the harassment of the Bengali-speaking population in Odisha. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now They organised a rally from the party's state headquarters. "The identity of Bengalis is being questioned in Odisha. Migrant workers are harassed every day, and they are questioned only because they speak Bengali. The safety of women from Bengal is also threatened. We submitted a memorandum to Odisha govt officials at Utkal Bhawan," Pradesh Congress spokesperson Suman Roychowdhury said.

Balbir Sidhu urges farmers not to fall for govt's web of false promises
Balbir Sidhu urges farmers not to fall for govt's web of false promises

Indian Express

timean hour ago

  • Indian Express

Balbir Sidhu urges farmers not to fall for govt's web of false promises

The senior Congress leader and former health minister of Punjab, Balbir Singh Sidhu, has appealed to the people not to fall for the web of deception being spun by the Punjab government regarding its so-called changes to the land pooling policy. He said that due to the government's poor financial condition, it is simply not in a position to provide Rs 50,000 or Rs 1 lakh per year in compensation to landowners. Sidhu said that this is the same government which failed to provide Rs 1,000 a month to women, couldn't clear payments to private hospitals under the Ayushman scheme, hasn't released pending dues to PRTC for women's free travel, hasn't paid dearness allowance to government employees on a par with the Centre and Haryana, and couldn't ensure MSP to farmers like Haryana does. 'How can such a government be expected to give Rs 50,000 or Rs 1 lakh annually to landowners?' he asked. He added that for 65,000 acres of land, if the government pays Rs 50,000 per acre annually until possession, the yearly liability will amount to Rs 325 crore and post-possession, this figure would double to Rs 650 crore annually. 'Even the common man can understand that under no circumstance can the Punjab government bear this kind of financial burden,' he said. The former minister stressed that the issue is not merely about money or compensation, it is tied to the very existence of farmers, which would be threatened by the implementation of this land pooling policy. 'A farmer's existence is linked to his land. Once the land is taken away, that identity is lost,' he said. He added that 90% of Punjab's farmers are from generations of agricultural families and cannot shift to any other profession. Losing their land would render them unemployed. Sidhu also highlighted that the policy makes no mention of the future of landless labourers and several other vulnerable sections of society who depend on agriculture. He warned that diverting such vast swathes of land from cultivation will not only reduce foodgrain production but will also severely harm Punjab's natural environment impacting animals, biodiversity, flora and fauna. He pointed out that the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, enacted by the Dr Manmohan Singh-led UPA government, clearly defined the responsibilities of governments in such matters, including fair compensation and rehabilitation. But instead of following that law, the Punjab government is trying to bypass its obligations through this misleading land pooling policy. The Congress leader questioned the need for such massive housing and industrial projects when thousands of residential and industrial plots in Punjab already lie vacant. 'That's exactly why the Punjab government had to recently launch a scheme to convert unused industrial plots into commercial ones,' he said. Sidhu demanded that the government immediately withdraw the land pooling policy and, if there is genuine need for land, acquire it under the 2013 Land Acquisition Act by offering one-time cash compensation so that farmers can buy land elsewhere and sustain their livelihoods. He said, 'Punjab's farmers are wise and will not be misled by the web of false promises being spread by the government.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store